NXT 1/31/18 Review: Roddy Vs. The UK

NXT 1/31/18 Review: Roddy Vs. The UK

NXT on January 31, 2018, was a good show that is building up characters, storylines, and feuds down the road. Let’s break it down:

We start off the show with a video package highlighting NXT Philadelphia as it was a great show. If you haven’t already, please check out and watch NXT Philadelphia, you won’t be disappointed.

Nikki Cross Vs. Lacey Evans was a good women’s match. After the comments that Lacey Evans made to Nikki Cross two weeks ago, it led to this match and it showcased both women quite well.

Lacey Evans had some nice offense against Nikki Cross in this match with the rope-aided handstand Bronco buster on Nikki Cross. She also hit a beautiful middle-rope moonsault, but Nikki Cross managed to get out of the way. Nikki Cross showed a lot of character in this match by the way she immediately attacked Lacey Evans once the bell rang with a running crossbody and the way she clubbed Lacey Evans when she had her on the ring apron. Good work by both women here.

The ending of the match came when Nikki Cross hit Lacey Evans with the swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker for the pin and win. A good win for Nikki Cross as she looks to climb back up in the NXT Women’s Championship picture. Let’s play!

Good women’s match and I’m interested to see what’s next for Nikki Cross and Lacey Evans in NXT.

We then see highlights of Undisputed Era Vs. Authors of Pain for the NXT Tag Team Championships at NXT Philadelphia which was a great tag team match. If you haven’t already, watch the match as it was great.

Just a reminder that Into The Fire by Asking Alexandria was a theme for NXT Philadelphia and it’s a good song. NXT Philadelphia was a great show and if you haven’t already, please check it out. You won’t be disappointed.

We then see highlights of Ember Moon Vs. Shayna Baszler for the NXT Women’s Championship at NXT Philadelphia which was an excellent women’s match. These highlights ties into the next segment which I will talk about next.

The backstage interview with Shayna Baszler by Kayla Braxton after her match at NXT Philadelphia was good. Shayna Baszler talked about how Ember Moon didn’t beat her, she survived. She then asked Kalya Braxton to try to interview Ember Moon to see who is the last woman standing.

Shayna Baszler has a point as she was the last woman standing between her and Ember Moon at NXT Philadelphia. I’m expecting a rematch between the two down the line possibly at NXT New Orleans, but we’ll see. Good backstage interview here.

We then see photos of Ember Moon entering the Women’s Rumble match at Royal Rumble. Very happy for Ember Moon as she got to be a part of history on that match and she did well for herself. Maybe a main roster call-up will be in her future, but we’ll see.

We then see highlights of Aleister Black Vs. Adam Cole in an Extreme Rules match at NXT Philadelphia which was an excellent Extreme Rules match. These highlights ties into the next segment which I will talk about next.

The backstage promo from Undisputed Era after Adam Cole’s Extreme Rules match was good. Kyle O’Reilly asked Bobby Fish and Adam Cole about what happened in the Extreme Rules match as Bobby Fish said that it didn’t go as planned where Kyle O’Reilly said that this was supposed to be their night. Adam Cole then yelled out and told Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly that SAnitY will pay for their actions as Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly as it was announced that next week, it will be Undisputed Era Vs. SAnitY for the NXT Tag Team Championships next week.

I can totally see why Undisputed Era was pissed off and they will get SAnitY next week, but the NXT Tag Team Championships will be on the line. We’ll see if Undisputed Era can retain their NXT Tag Team Championships. Good backstage promo here.

We then see Roderick Strong running up and down the stairs as he prepares for this match against Tyler Bate later on the show. It seems like Roderick Strong is ready to go and we’ll see how he fares against Tyler Bate later on.

Just a reminder that When The Lights Come on by Asking Alexandria was a theme for NXT Philadelphia and it’s a good song. If you haven’t already, watch NXT Philadelphia as it was a great show. You won’t be disappointed.

We then see highlights of Kassius Ohno Vs. Velveteen Dream at NXT Philadelphia as it was a great match. These highlights also tie into the next segment in which I will talk about next.

The backstage interview with Velveteen Dream by Kayla Braxton was good. Velveteen Dream talked about how he knows what he said, but for Kassius Ohno, the dream is over for him as he asked Kayla Braxton to read his trunks as she said Dream Over as he left.

Velveteen Dream continues to shine every time he’s in the ring and he’s only going to get better from here. I can’t wait to see how Velveteen Dream will continue to shine in 2018. Good backstage interview here.

TM-61 Vs. The Ealy Brothers was a good tag team squash match. TM-61 have their in-ring return to NXT! Mark out moment! Great to see these guys after not seeing them for a year. Anyway, back to the match itself.

The Ealy Brothers did get a bit of offense in this match by the switching spots since they’re twins. However, TM-61 was too much for them as they hit Thunder Valley (Double-team gorilla press slam) on Uriel Ealy for the pin and win. A good win for TM-61 as they’re looking to get back in the NXT Tag Team Championship picture. They are The Mighty and The Mighty Don’t Kneel!

Good tag team squash match and I’m happy to see TM-61 back in NXT.

We then see Tyler Bate warming up backstage as he’s getting ready for his match against Roderick Strong later on the show. Should be an interesting match between the two and I can’t wait to see it.

We then see photos of the winners of the 2017 NXT Year-End Awards where you check out the winners on WWE.com. 2017 was a great year for NXT in my opinion and I hope to see 2018 to be great as well.

The backstage segment between TM-61 and Christy St. Cloud was good. TM-61 was talking to Christy St. Cloud backstage as Nick Miller said that what they see TM-61 back then, was the old them because now, they are The Mighty. Shane Thorne then followed up by saying that they are The Mighty and The Mighty Don’t Kneel.

It seems like TM-61 is moving on from what happened back then and looking into the present and future. I wonder if they’re changing their tag team name to The Mighty and if that’s the case, I’m for it as it’s a callback to their old tag team name with TMDK (The Mighty Don’t Kneel). We’ll have to wait and see. Good backstage segment here.

We then see highlights of Andrade “Cien” Almas Vs. Johnny Gargano for the NXT Championship and then Tommaso Ciampa attacking Johnny Gargano after the match at NXT Philadelphia. This was an amazing match so check it out if you haven’t already and it also ties into the next segment which I will talk about next.

The backstage interview with Tommaso Ciampa by Kayla Braxton was great. Kayla Braxton and other interviewers were trying to interview Tommaso Ciampa about his actions on Johnny Gargano at NXT Philadelphia, but Tommaso Ciampa didn’t say a word as he exited the building.

Sometimes, the biggest words are none at all as Tommaso Ciampa didn’t feel like he should say anything at all about what he did. Glad to see Tommaso Ciampa back as this will reignite the feud between him and Johnny Gargano since his absence so I’m looking forward to it. Great backstage interview here.

We then see photos of Andrade “Cien” Almas entering the Men’s Rumble match at Royal Rumble. Andrade “Cien” Almas had a great run in the Royal Rumble match as he lasted longer than I expected. Very happy for him. This could indicate that he might get called up to the main roster soon, but we’ll wait and see.

The backstage interview with Andrade “Cien” Almas and Zelina Vega by Cathy Kelley after the Men’s Rumble match was good. Zelina Vega talked about how Andrade “Cien” Almas showed the world what he was made of as Andrade “Cien” Almas said that Royal Rumble weekend was his weekend and it’s only the beginning for him. Zelina Vega then asked Andrade “Cien” Almas where is Johnny Gargano as Andrade “Cien” Almas responded by saying he doesn’t know as they left.

Andrade “Cien” Almas and Zelina Vega seemed very confident about themselves, but I can’t blame them as they had a pretty good weekend and I hope more great things will come for the both of them in 2018. Good backstage interview here.

We then see a recap of what happened at NXT Philadelphia when EC3 was shown in the crowd as well as Adam Cole entering at the Men’s Royal Rumble. Very happy for both EC3 and Adam Cole as I’m excited what happens to these two in the near future.

We then get an announcement that next week, it will be Killian Dain Vs. Adam Cole and Undisputed Era Vs. SAnitY for the NXT Tag Team Championships. Those should be great matches and I’m looking forward to them.

Tyler Bate Vs. Roderick Strong in a #1 Contender’s match for the WWE United Kingdom Championship was excellent. Mark out moment! These two went out there and delivered an excellent match where neither man looked weak in the process.

Tyler Bate did excellent in this match as he tried to get another shot at the WWE United Kingdom Championship. The way he countered Roderick Strong’s double underhook powerbomb into a hurricanrana was beautifully executed and his rebound lariat on Roderick Strong looked like it knocked Roderick Strong’s head off. Excellent work by Tyler Bate here.

Roderick Strong did excellent in this match as well as he tried to become the next #1 Contender for the WWE United Kingdom Championship. The way Roderick Strong hit Tyler Bate with a lot of different varieties of the backbreakers looked devastating and it looked like it might break Tyler Bate’s back. Excellent work by Roderick Strong here.

The ending of the match came when Roderick Strong hit Tyler Bate with The End of Heartache (Vertical suplex into a double knee backbreaker) for the pin and win. A great win for Roderick Strong as he’s now the #1 Contender for the WWE United Kingdom Championship. Roddy Vs. The World!

Excellent match and I can’t wait to see Pete Dunne Vs. Roderick Strong for the WWE United Kingdom Championship down the line.

Overall, a good show that is building up characters, storylines, and feuds down the road. Next week, we will get Undisputed Era Vs. SAnitY for the NXT Tag Team Championships and Killian Dain Vs. Adam Cole which should be interesting to see. Looking forward to it. NXT! NXT! NXT!